It is Friday morning.  After rising, switching on the iphone, a text message was waiting.  A friend asked if I could meet him at Limestone Coffee Shop at 7.  I had ten minutes.  I pressed ahead with the bowl of cheerios, grabbed my coat and was out the door.  Arriving at the coffee shop I stood waiting in line to purchase the coffee that always helps to spark awareness at the beginning of the day.  A tune Gypsy by Fleetwood Mac was playing while I waited.  Listening to the strong, full-hearted voice of Stevie Nicks, I felt moved by the story. Momentarily I was on the verge of tears. 

Are we not all gypsies, strictly speaking?  Our tenure here is short term, even if we resist considering the matter in that light.  Relationships are what matter most.  If we are lucky, fortunate, “lightning strikes once, maybe twice,” and we reflect upon what we share or once shared with those few who meant the most to us.

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Before turning in last night I obtained a New York Times story about the Russian siege of the Ukrainian city, Mykolaiv.  Instinctively I chose to save the article until this morning.  Reading an account of the war has lead to a near sleepless night before.

The Times story which I just finished emphasized the true nature of our brief sojourn here.  How important it is for us to demonstrate compassion for one another, to “go the extra mile” to assist our fellowmen and women with whatever they need.  Here are several excerpts from the article:

A few blocks from the morgue, the Coffee Go cafe is doing a brisk business, even as artillery fire rattles the plate-glass windows. When the owners tried to close down, their teenage employees rebelled, said Viktoria Kuplevskaya, an 18-year-old barista with a streak of orange in her hair.
“We wanted to work,” she said. “I’m not scared of anything.”

Vitaliy Kim, the governor of the Mykolaiv region. His upbeat videos on Facebook and Telegram typically garner half a million views…

“What can I say, the 17th day of war, all is well, the mood is excellent,” Mr. Kim said in a message over the weekend that began with news of an airstrike on a residential neighborhood. “We have freedom and we’re fighting for it. And all they have is slavery. We want all of our dreams to come true and we’re moving in that direction. Together to victory.”

Maj. Gen. Dmitry Marchenko, commander of Ukraine’s military forces in Mykolaiv…
“We are defending our homes, our women, our families,” he said. “We don’t need their world. We don’t need their language. Let them build their own country and die in it and create whatever dictatorship they want there. We’re going to live like free people.”

If you’d like to read the full New York Times article CLICK HERE.

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Here is a fine rendition of Gypsy covered by Rumors of Fleetwood Mac.

Gypsy

By Fleetwood Mac

So I’m back, to the velvet underground
Back to the floor, that I love
To a room with some lace and paper flowers
Back to the gypsy that I was
To the gypsy… that I was
And it all comes down to you
Well, you know that it does
Well, lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
Ah, and it lights up the night
And you see your gypsy
You see your gypsy
To the gypsy that remains faces freedom with a little fear
I have no fear, I have only love
And if I was a child
And the child was enough
Enough for me to love
Enough to love
She is dancing away from me now
She was just a wish
She was just a wish
And a memory is all that is left for you now
You see your gypsy
You see your gypsy
Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
And it all comes down to you
And it all comes down to you
Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
And it all comes down to you
I still see your bright eyes, bright eyes
And it all comes down to you
I still see your bright eyes, bright eyes
And it all comes down to you
I still see your bright eyes, bright eyes
(She was just a wish)
(She was just a wish)
And it all comes down to you
Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
And it all comes down to you

Lyrics by Stevie Nicks